I Still See It
by MoonlightUmbreon
Summary: Christmas gift for ShiningZephyr. Once you've made Vlad Master's blacklist, there are a number of things you should or shouldn't expect. Actually, to be more precise, there's just one; Don't expect to live. Oneshot.


**Author's Note:**  
Merry Christmas everyone! Your friendly neighbourhood MoonlightUmbreon here. :D This is a Christmas gift-fic for Shining Zephyr, who's a very good friend of mine. I took this suggestion with open arms and really had some fun with it. Though fun might not be the way to describe this... (looks dark) Enjoy.

**Disclaimer:  
**I do not own Danny Phantom or anything related to Danny Phantom in any way, shape or form. Even the rough outline for this plot is owned by Shining-Zephyr, who requested it, so, eheh, I own nothing. :P

* * *

**I Still See It  
A Christmas Gift for Shining-Zephyr**

**-MoonlightUmbreon-**

**

* * *

**Daylight seeped in through a semi-open window. A man dressed in an immaculate black business suit breathed in the fresh air deeply and watched as two birds, which were chirping and chattering quite happily on the ledge, burst into a flurry of feathers and flames as two bright pink energy beams hit them.

"What a wonderful way to start the day!" the man exclaimed cheerily, straightening up the collar of his suit. "The sun's shining, the breeze is refreshing – and the birds aren't even twittering!"

Vlad Masters, with a twisted kind of grin on his face, straightened up and waltzed over to his desk. That grin never faded – it was very hard to wipe a smirk like that off of _anyone's_ face. The man could have probably disappeared, leaving only that behind. Considering his status as the self-proclaimed most powerful and ingenious half ghost, that wasn't really meant metaphorically, either.

This same smirk became ever-wider, now showing his pearly-white teeth as he looked down at the paper sitting on the desk in front of him.

"_I have tracked, located and caught the Ghost Child. Give me my part of the deal and he's yours."_

"My, my Skulker. Your handwriting is certainly very neat for a ghost that takes pleasure in hacking the heads off of your victims. I take it that it _is_ the usual spot, but what time works for you? I would also like to request that you transport him in something fully escape-proof, thank-you." The writing on the letter (which appeared to be glowing green in a rather radioactive way) instantly evaporated, leaving a spot for Vlad's words to form in a laser pink colour. He proceeded to look around suspiciously, only then clapping his hands twice.

Within a few seconds, a small, young ghost boy in a postman's outfit appeared, a few feet in the air to come to Vlad's eye level. He smiled happily, freckles all over his face. "Anything that I can be of assistance with, sir?"

"Yes, there is, actually. Could you deliver this note to a ghost that goes by the name of 'Skulker'in a large robotic suit? And I'd like you to bring back a reply to it, too."

"Yes sir!"

As soon as Vlad had handed the young postal ghost the letter, he disappeared into nothingness. Well, you certainly couldn't complain with efficiency these days. It just kept getting better and better.

Within a few minutes, the ghost and the letter returned. The boy smiled brightly, tipping his hat and giving the letter to its rightful recipient.

"Here it is, sir! Since I was extra quick, might one be bold enough as to ask for a bit of spare change? I do so love to eat fizzy protoplasm bombs."

Vlad's expression darkened, previously normal eyes glowing a bright, forewarning red. "Do you think I'm _made _of money, boy?! It doesn't grow on trees!"

The boy tipped his hat nervously, apologising profusely and backing away. Quickly, before the half-ghost hybrid had a chance to punish him, he evaporated into nothingness. Vlad grumbled something about ungrateful young boys and a sweet-tasting biscuit at random, opening his letter to see what would be done about the present situation.

"_I might be a brute to you, but I take care of my handwriting, Plasmius. 4:15am tomorrow, the usual spot in an intangibility and ecto-proof net. If you don't turn up or provide your part of the bargain, the child shall be mine to claim the pelt of and hang on my mantle. I assume you are already aware of this, however, _aren't you_?"_

"Indeed I am." he thought aloud, running his foot along a bag full of ecto-powered weaponry that sat just under his desk. "I might not have been the one to catch him, but I will make sure that he meets his end at my hands. This time, once and for all... because when you let my best clone escape from being melted down, you make it to my _blacklist_, dear boy."

* * *

The ghost-proof net smoked, giving off a rather singed smell. A voice could be heard from inside, screaming to be let out, but this ultimately only annoyed Skulker, resulting with a quick smack over the head with a large robotic arm. The voice was silenced.

"Thank God. For a moment there I was considering amputating my own ears."

Skulker looked at Vlad, eyes gleaming with an extremely satisfied smile on his face. "I would be only too glad to do the honours."

"That won't be necessary." Vlad replied coldly, obviously not impressed. He continued, changing the subject. "I have my part in this deal – the vast array of ectoplasmic weapons you asked for. Now, the boy?"

Skulker nodded stiffly and picked up the net, handing it to Vlad reluctantly as he received his reward.

"These better work, or your ears _will _be amputated."

"I can assure you, Skulker, that those are of only the best quality and make."

Skulker grunted to reply, beginning to rummage through the sack. Without either saying anything more to the other, they parted ways from a dark alley in Oregon, Vlad taking a self-made portal back to Amity Park, Illinois.

* * *

Danny remained unconscious right until the sun came up, and Vlad used this as what he thought was his perfect advantage, removing him from the net and trying to place him into one of his newer inventions, which was actually ripped off from one of the Fentons' many blueprints.

However, it wasn't as much of a perfect opportunity as he thought it was. Though the light from the morning dazzled the victim, when Danny woke up he realised almost instantly what was happening.

A scream, a struggle, a punch and a transformation all happened simultaneously. No less than five seconds later, Vlad sprung back to his feet. His nose was bloody and oozing onto the floor; neon green and crimson slush mixing as it landed. His appearance suddenly changed, two deathly black rings transforming him into nothing short of a vampiric monster.

The soon-to-be victim, the _prey _sped out of the large manor and into the open air, phasing through countless walls and objects and sweating from fright. He turned around sharply and with hands aglow, shot two bright green energy blasts that hurtled towards his pursuer.

The effort was fruitless as a simple one-faced shield blocked the attack, sending it flying to the ground. A smoking crater was all that was left on a patch of previously flourishing lawn.

"You're getting rusty, Vlad. Usually that's directed back at me; not the ground."

"Banter isn't needed this time, boy." Vlad sneered through barred teeth. "I don't waste time with people I want to kill!"

"_Kill_?!" Danny choked, losing much altitude as Vlad made an aerobatic dive in a failed attempt to catch him. "Since when have you wanted to _kill _me?!"

"Since _now!_" Vlad's voice came from the back of his throat, almost making a guttural sound that Germans often used. Another pair of beams formed at his hands, pelting directly downwards onto the prey's head. Danny became finally bound by gravity, spiraling towards the ground. Vlad stayed where he was and watched, grin broad and eyes hungry.

Danny felt the wind whip past him. He tried to reposition himself in the air, but suddenly it was like he was strapped to a block of cement. He couldn't use that little bit of concentration that he needed to fly because of the way the last blast had struck him in the head; he was barely holding his ghost form as it was.

The older half-ghost stared at the boy, waiting for him to hit the ground with glee. However, much to his discontent, the boy didn't really hit the ground as hard as intended. Though it certainly wasn't flying, he had managed to slow himself down enough to avoid injury when he landed on his back. Vlad continued to ignore his nose (which appeared to be broken) and dived downwards, landing right beside Danny and holding his throat tightly to the ground.

"As Walker might be so crude as to say...; gotcha, punk."

The poor child struggled under the iron grip of the other half ghost hybrid, kicking his legs and straining his throat to breathe. He attempted to grab onto Vlad's hand and force it from his neck, but it was firmly in place. His headache began and continued to rise for every few seconds he was strapped for air.

It took much longer than usual to occur, but instinct did eventually take over. Vlad found his victim sinking into the ground, losing all tangibility. Growling, Vlad flew upwards, looking down with the eyes of an eagle. Danny had no way of realising that he was going to be pounced upon as soon as he rose upwards again.

This time Vlad took no chances. He unmercifully crushed Danny's throat with both hands, now using his ghost powers to stop the boy from becoming intangible and melting through anything – his grip in particular. Danny tried to kick, but Vlad made sure he didn't by sticking his legs to the ground with manipulated ectoplasm.

"_Never again, _boy," Vlad scowled, deep marks of hatred etched into his face. His two gloved hands, enclosed and wrapped right around the victim's throat, glowed an awful pink. "will we cross paths. _Never again, Little Badger_, will your eyes, whether they be blue or green, look into mine. _**Never again**__, Daniel_,will you _ever_ act as an out-of-line teenage pawn in an elaborate game of chess!"

The grip around Danny's jugular tightened. His air supply was completely cut off, and even he needed some oxygen to stay alive and functioning. Not only that, but the older man held it in such a way that he cut off the blood flow to Danny's brain. He stared into Vlad's crimson eyes, because that was about all that he could do.

The pink energy circulating Vlad's hand became thicker and glowed more intensely than before, and the scowl on his face became ever-more apparent. Tears began to form in the child's eyes as he struggled to get away.

* * *

In the end, that's what it came down to. Vlad was forty-something years old, with over twenty years of experience and training. Danny was a minor, barely sixteen and had only acquired ghost powers for just two years.

Nobody knew what happened to the older half ghost after he committed the unspeakable act. Some say he went insane and flew off somewhere. Others say that he could no longer live with himself. Many believe he is still out there somewhere, as was left on a note found close to his victim.

A minority speculate that he's searching for me, trying to hunt me down so he can eliminate the only one who witnessed this act, too scared to come out of invisibility, and also as the only one that reminded him of my 'cousin'. They're wrong! As I look into his eyes for the first time in three months, _despite it all, _I still see a father.

I'm not sure why his hands are glowing...

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**Author's Note**  
Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed! Especially you, Shine! :D Reviews are much appreciated, and so is criticism! Thank-you and goodnight!


End file.
